Machinery fob beating and cleaning wire



UNITED STATES r rENT OFFICE.

.TNOQJ. HOWE, OF DERBY, CONNECTIGUT.

MACHINERY FOR BEATING AND CLEANING WIRE.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 4,324, dated December 26, 1845.

To 'all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JOHN J. HoW'E, of Derby, in the'county of New Haven and State of Connectcut, have invented a new and useful Machine for Beating VVire; and I. do hereby declare the'following is a full and exact description 'of the Construction, operation., and manner of using the same, reference beinghad to the 'annexed drawings, which make part of this specificatio'n.

It is usual in connection with the process of wire-drawingto beat the wire on a block or stone for the purpose of cleaning it, and this has conmonly been done 'by manual labor; the operator takes a convenient quantity of wire in his hands, and beats it' on the block or stone, occasionally Shift-ing it around, till the whole is cleaned.

The operation of-the machine herein described consists in successively lifting the wire and dropping it or letting it fall through a sutlicient space, upon a suitable block, so that the momentum acquired ,by the wire in falling serves in place of the blow given by the operator when the work is done by hand; and also shifting the wire around a little at each successive stroke, in order to equalize the action on the differen parts of it.

The drawingsjconsisting of three figures, are made on a scale of about one-eighth the actual size of the machine.

Figure 1 is a plan of part of the machine, showing the block and lifter in combination; Fig. 2, a vertical section of the en tire machine; Fig. 3, a front elevation of the guide, and showing its combination with the lifter.

The block, a, Figs. 1 and 2, is made of hard wood, and is fitted to stand on the floor as shown in Fig. 2. A portion is eX- cavated from the upper surface of the block, a, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, to form a suitable cavity to receive the arms and hub of the lifter, b, and to allow said lifter to fall some distance below the upper surface of said block. There is a hole through the center of the block, a, in a vertical position, through which the shaft c, passes, and which serves as a guide and support for said shaft, as shown in Fig. 2. There are two sets of pins, 1 and 2, connected with the block, a, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, which form a curb to keep the wire from sliding out of place. The interior set of pins, 1, are inclined from the perpendicular a little inward toward the center, and the exterior set of pins, 2, are inclined a little outward center of the hub, by'which said lifter is r connected with the shaft, a, as shown in Figs. l and 2. The extremityof one of the arms of thelifter, b, moves up and down in 'a guide, h,-'a horiz'ontal section of which guide is 'shown in Fig. 1,- and a fron'televatio'n of the same in combination with the lifter, b, is shown in F-ig. 3. The-dotted lines in Fig. 3, indicate the'track in which the end of the 'arm 'of the lifter, b, will move, in traversing up and down in the guide, h and the arr'ows indicate the direction of the" motion of 'the same.

In operation, the lifter when carrying the wire up, will turn, around its center, on the shaft c, from left to right,

through a small space, carrying the wire around with it; but when said lifter 'falls, it will fall, together with the wire, perpendicularly, and without any horizontal motion, untilthe wire strikes the block,-and'-` then the lifter, in descending after the wire has struck the block will return from right to left, to the same extent that it turns from left to right in ascending; and by `means of this last described movement of the lifter, b, the wire will be shifted around from left to right, a short distance at each successive stroke. The shaft c has a collar near its upper end .to support the lifter, b, the portion of said shaft above said collar being fitted to the hole in the hub of the lifter, b, so as to carry the lifter steadily, but, at the same time, to allow the lifter to turn freely in a horizontal direction, on its hearing on the shaft c, as shown in Fig. 2. Near its lower end the shaft c, is connected with the lever d, by a pin in the manner shown in Fig. 2.

The lever d is connected with the stand, f, by a center pin near the middle of said lever, and has one of its ends connected with the shaft c, as before described, and its other end placed so as to receive the action of the cam, e, as is shown in Fig. 2. The stand f, is properly secured to a suitable frame or foundation timber, g Fig. 2. The cam, e, Fig. 2, is fastened upon a rotary axs, i, Fig. 2, to which axis the motive power is applied so as to communicate to said cam a rotary motion in the direction indicated by the arrow. Each revolution of the cam, e, depresses the arm of the lever, d, on which it acts, and elevates the lifter b, in connection with the other arm of said lever; and when the cam, e, in passing around, leaves the lever d, the lifter b, falls by its own weight, together with any wire which it may have elevated in rising.

In Operating with the machine, the wire (having been properly prepared for heating, or cleaning in any manner ordinarily practised by wire-drawers) is laid uponthe machine so as to encircle the inner set of pins 1, and to be surrounded by the outer set of pins, 2; and it may be so placed either when the machine is at rest or in operation. A suiiicent quantity of wire (for example 150 lbs.) having been so prepared and placed on the machine, the operation is performed in the manner herein before described. The speed of the machine may be 30 or more strokes per minute.

The principle by which the machine herein described may be distinguished from other inventions, consists in its producing the proper action on the wire by alternately lifting it and dropping it or letting fall upon a suitable block or platform; and I consider the combination of a lifter to raise the wire, a curb (represented by the two sets of pins l and 2) to retain the wire in its place on the lifter, and a block or platform on which to let the wire fall as constituting a combination of parts essential to any machine for beating wire, constructed to operate according to said principle. But I do not consider the shifting of the wire around in the manner herein described as being indispensable, though it is a useful part of the operation; therefore the modfications of the machine, as herein before described, which are specially designed for shiftng the wire around, may bedispensed with, withcut destroying the usefulness of the machine. If it be preferred to dispense with said operation of shifting the wire around, the lifter may be formed and adapted to fall directly on the top of theblock and may so fall with the wire resting or falling on it-so that the lifter shall be always interposed between the wire and the blockand the block may present a plain flat surface for the lifter to strike upon, instead of being excavated on its upper surface as herein before described; the curb may be attached to the lifter, or may form part of the same, instead of being attached to the block as herein before described-and the guide h may be dispensed with. v

Iclam as my invention and wish to secure by Letters Patenty 1 The combination herein described of parts which are designated herein and marked in the drawings respectively as follows, viz., the block or platform, a, the lifter, b, and the curb or pins 1 and 2. 4 i

2. And I claim said combination of the block, lifter and curb whether in combination with, or without the guide, h.

JNO. J. HOWE.

Witnesses HENRY WHITNEY, TRUMAN PIPER. 

